The Duchess is a Natural!

Thanks, UKate reader, Lo!

Recycled from this April Photo?

The BBC’s Peter Hunt has reported via Twitter that the Duchess has changed for the third time today. He said she is wearing a black and white “bird” dress by Issa London to the barbeque.

Might Kate be recycling her wardrobe and sporting the same dress she wore to her final wedding rehearsal  before arriving at The Goring Hotel back in April? Once we get a confirmation, you’ll know!

Updated: Readers, it does look like Kate has recycled her wardrobe once again! Check out the video of the barbeque, courtesy of Reuters!

Lace Cecile shift scoop-backed dress from Erdem Moralioglu

We LOVE this dress! More deets:  The Mail reports that the frock designed by Montreal’s own Erdem Moralioglu is a navy, lace Cecile shift scoop-backed dress of contrast stone crepe with a navy lace overlay and a sheer lace sleeve with a scallop detail.

Kate looked stunning after her trans-Atlantic flight, stepping off the jet in a lace dress by Canadian Erdem Moralioglu.

She accepted flowers from a boy on the tarmac before being greeted by a series of dignitaries. But there wasn’t a lot of time for chatting as the two are on a tight schedule!

Cute hair, Kate!

Despite the crazy wind, Kate’s hair looked chic, pulled half-up in the back.

Next it was off to the Tomb of the Unknown soldier for a ceremonial wreath-laying. We’ll post pictures when we have them, readers.

In the mean time, check out Wills’ nifty new flag, which will be flying on numerous buildings around Canada during the visit.

Duke of Cambridge flag

The Duke of Cambridge’s flag features the letter W wearing a coronet, indicating that Wills is the child of the future monarch. Wills also has a three-pointed label with a red shell at the top of his flag, taken from his coat of arms. The shell is a symbol of the Spencer clan.

Stay tuned for more deets throughout the day, readers!

Wills and Kate have landed! Emerging from their jet, clearly having made an outfit change, the Duchess waved and smiled at thousands of onlookers in Ottawa just now!

Dress by Erdem Moraliaoglu

Kate is wearing a lace dress by Canadian designer Erdem Moraliaoglu and looking amazing!

She paired the dress with a black cardi and nude pumps.

Kate’s hair was half-up/half-down and looking beautifully tousled despite the windy day in Ottawa.

The duke and duchess were greeted by Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson and other political leaders and their guests.

Fans have been waiting at the National War Memorial since early yesterday.  Wills and Kate are headed there now to place a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown soldier. Wish we were there!

More deets as they come in, readers!

Canada, Here I Come!

And they’re off!

William and Kate boarded a Canadian Royal Air Force jet this morning at Heathrow Airport for their much-anticipated official tour of Canada and visit to California.

Matching her husband in navy blue, Kate covered her Roland Moure “Manon” dress (on-sale for $935…thanks reader, Kimberly) with a matching Smythe “One-Button” blazer ($595) with gold detailing.

She paired the monochrome look with matching navy pumps (are those Manolo’s, readers?) and a Mulberry “Polly Push-lock” Tote in Midnight ($1,435).

The couple are expected to arrive in Ottowa at 2pm (EST) where they will celebrate Canada Day tomorrow.

The Mail reports that a new personal flag has been created for the couple to use for their historic first trip.

It is the first flag to be created by Canada for a member of the royal family since 1962, when the queen adopted a personal flag for her own use in Canada.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the flag was approved by the queen and William.

The next few days are going to be a fashion-frenzy! We can’t wait to see what wardrobe Kate has in store for us!

From the looks of the past couple of weeks, it appears as though the Duchess is going the more high-end designer route rather than High Street.

We all know what that means…break out the wallet and prepare to burn up that AMEX!

UPDATED: View video of the couple leaving the airport courtesy of The Telegraph!

"C" for Catherine

The past two times we’ve seen Kate – when visiting with families of the Irish Guards and taking in a game at Wimbledon on Monday – we noticed she was wearing a new gold-linked charm bracelet adorned with a “C” under an inscribed crown.

What we thought might be a gift from new husband turns out to be in fact from new step-mother-in-law, Camilla Parker-Bowles.

We know that Camilla and Kate seem to be thick as thieves, even lunching together and taking in the ballet in the weeks leading up to the Royal wedding. It seems as though they are even closer than we expected, with the Duchess of Cornwall presenting the gift to Kate as a wedding gift.

A close source to the couple confirmed to The Daily Express that the gift was a wedding present but wouldn’t say it was from Camilla, “We’re not saying from whom, as it was a personal wedding gift. It’s a private ­matter.”

"C" for Camilla

According to The Mail, “The disc charm has Catherine’s monogram on one side, and Camilla’s on the other. Both are Cs are under a coronet, but Kate’s C has an extra curl, while Camilla’s is surrounded by a circle.”

It is said that Camilla has a similar version of the bracelet that she also wears on her wrist.

The gift certainly shows the close bond that the two have developed, with Camilla being a great sounding board for the new Duchess on adapting to being part of the Royal family. Camilla has also described Kate as being “a lovely girl”.

Clearly the feeling is mutual as Kate has been seen wearing her new gift with pride.

We expect knock-offs will be hitting the market soon! Keep watch if you’re interested!

The Middletons Take Centre Court! Photo © AELTC/M.Hangst -Wimbledon.com

Sorry fellas of the world…she’s still a taken woman!

Pippa Middleton put her relationship-woe rumors to bed today, finally being seen with “on” boyfriend Alex Loudon.

The pair were spotted with Pip’s ‘rents Carole and Michael at Wimbledon Centre Court taking in a match between Swiss hottie Roger Federer and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Kate’s sis was dressed in a fabulous red-linen figure-hugging frock with gold button detailing by NW3. The cap-sleeved “Wyldes” dress was on sale on the site for $142. A quick trip shows that the item has already taken on the “Middleton Effect” and has sold out in all sizes. Keep a watch though for a restock!

Ironically enough, Pippa was seen wearing the same dress while shopping in London yesterday at shoe-store Russell & Bromley (thanks for the tip, @KateFan). Guess she likes the look to sport it two days in a row!

Pippa paired the look with her namesake “Pippa” Modalu tan handbag and matching espadrilles. Boyfriend Alex was her best accessory, however, looking extremely handsome in his tan trousers with matching navy blue jacket and light-blue striped tie.

Apparently we weren’t the only ones impressed by Pip’s look. Aussie celeb Dannii Minogue gave a “thumbs-up”, tweeting, “Whoop #WeLove Pippa Middleton’s red dress @Wimbledon today. Tres chic!”

Indeed!

It is a truth universally acknowledged – England is a small place where family trees endlessly tangle.

Jane Austen

According to the Daily Mail, Kate’s roots are distantly intertwined with that of British novelist Jane Austen.

It was discovered via the genealogy website Ancestry.com, that the two are 11th cousins, six times removed, sharing a common 15th century ancestor in Henry Percy, the 2nd Earl of Northumberland.

Our jackets are growing suede elbow pads just reading this. So fancy, you guys.

Representatives from Ancestry.com said the connection was fitting given Austen’s many female characters who fall in love with, or try to marry, smugly sideburned men of high social status.

“Finding this connection between the Duchess of Cambridge and Jane Austen is very exciting since, in many ways, Catherine is the modern Jane Austen heroine: a middle class girl marrying the future King of England,” said Anastasia Harman, lead family historian for Ancestry.com.

“Jane Austen may have written about happily-ever-after but it seems Catherine has found a nonfiction hero to spend her life with – far past the epilogue,” Harman said.

Gag! We get it.

Born in 1775, Jane Austen is one of the best-known novelists and social satirists ever. You remember reading ‘Pride and Prejudice’ in English Lit and watching ‘Emma’ with your bitches in the dorm, right?

Jane’s plots highlighted the bleak plight of women in 18th century England and their dependence on marriage to achieve social standing and financial security in a class-obsessed society.

Also, the outfits were good.

So, we can totally see the connection. Kate is nothing if not endowed with a generous portion of sense and sensibility!

Speaking of sense, for someone who had an awful lot to say about marriage, Jane must have known something many women didn’t – as she never tied the knot herself.

But, we have to keep reminding ourselves that Colin Firth wasn’t actually alive back then. So, guess you made a good call, Jane!

Sorry Newsweek - We Don't Approve

We at UKate Headquarters were (and still are) HUGE fans of Princess Diana.

So we were certainly creeped-out this morning when we woke to see the new Newsweek cover that superimposes William’s late mother walking with daughter-in-law Kate Middleton; just ahead of what would have been Di’s 50^th birthday.

The article, written by editor-in-chief – and Diana biographer – Tina Brown, paints a “what if” scenario of what Diana’s life might be like now if she had not tragically passed at the age of 36.

“Diana would have been 50 this month,” Brown writes. “What would she have been like? Still great-looking: that’s a given.” 

Brown predicts in her story that Diana would have moved to New York, kept her eternal beauty through Botox shots (like any other lady of her age) and would have been a Twitter phenomenon; using social media to tell her story to some 10-million followers. 

We love to think what might have been if Diana had survived, but also think Newsweek went a bit far with this morbid cover.  

Readers, what are your thoughts? Is the cover inappropriate?